Diver searching sunken ferry off South Korea dies

By Ed Payne and Stella Kim, CNN

Updated 2:07 AM ET, Wed May 14, 2014

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Sewol ferry captain Lee Joon-Seok was acquitted of murder, avoiding a death sentence, but was sentenced to 36 years in jail on November 11 for his role in the maritime disaster that killed more than 300.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Shoes believed to belong to the missing and the deceased are on display at the harbor.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Jindo harbor, where the search operation is based, has become a memorial for those who lost their lives. Yellow ribbons and photos are displayed as people come to pay their respects.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A joint government-civilian task force is still looking for the missing, but winter is fast approaching.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Ten are still missing from tragic ferry sinking last April, which killed more than 300. Six months later, families are still waiting for their loved ones to be found. The parents of 16-year-old Huh Da-yoon, pictured, are among them.

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South Korean ferry sinks – The families of the ten who remain missing have been waiting in Jindo Indoor Gymnasium since the first day. Families can watch search mission in real time on a large monitor in the gym.

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South Korean ferry sinks – South Korean President Park Geun-hye weeps while delivering a speech to the nation about the sunken ferry Sewol at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday, May 19. More than 200 bodies have been found and nearly 100 people remain missing after the ferry sank April 16 off South Korea's southwest coast.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Police in Seoul detain a protester during a march Saturday, May 17, for victims of the Sewol.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A girl in Seoul holds a candle during a service paying tribute to the victims of the Sewol on Wednesday, April 30.

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South Korean ferry sinks – People pay tribute to victims at a memorial altar in Ansan, South Korea, on Tuesday, April 29.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A police officer holds an umbrella for a relative of a missing ferry passenger Monday, April 28, in Jindo, South Korea.

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South Korean ferry sinks – South Korean Buddhists carry lanterns in a parade in Seoul on Saturday, April 26, to honor the memory of the dead and the safe return of the missing.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Divers search for people in the waters near Jindo on April 26.

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South Korean ferry sinks – People in Ansan attend a memorial for the victims on April 26.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A diver jumps into the sea near the sunken ferry on Friday, April 25.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A relative of a passenger weeps while waiting for news of his missing loved one at a port in Jindo on April 25.

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South Korean ferry sinks – People attend a memorial for the victims at the Olympic Memorial Hall in Ansan on Thursday, April 24.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Yellow ribbons honoring the victims flap in the wind as a hearse carrying a victim's body leaves Danwon High School in Ansan on April 24. Most of the people on board the ferry were high school students on their way to the resort island of Jeju.

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South Korean ferry sinks – People attend a memorial for the victims at Olympic Memorial Hall in Ansan.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Search personnel dive into the sea on Wednesday, April 23.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Flares light up the search area on Tuesday, April 22.

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South Korean ferry sinks – The sun sets over the site of the sunken ferry on April 22.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A relative of a ferry passenger prays as she waits for news in Jindo on April 22.

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South Korean ferry sinks – The search for victims continues April 22 in the waters of the Yellow Sea.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Rescue workers in Jindo carry the body of a passenger on Monday, April 21.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Divers jump into the water on April 21 to search for passengers near the buoys that mark the site of the sunken ferry.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Search operations continue as flares illuminate the scene near Jindo on Sunday, April 20.

South Korean ferry sinks – Relatives of passengers look out at the sea from Jindo on April 20.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Police officers in Jindo stand guard Saturday, April 19, to prevent relatives of the ferry's missing passengers from jumping in the water. Some relatives said they will swim to the shipwreck site and find their missing family members by themselves.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Family members of missing passengers hug as they await news of their missing relatives at Jindo Gymnasium on April 19.

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South Korean ferry sinks – South Korean Navy Ship Salvage Unit members prepare to salvage the sunken ferry and search for missing people on April 19.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Lee Joon Suk, the captain of the Sewol, is escorted to the court that issued his arrest warrant Friday, April 18, in Mokpo, South Korea.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A woman cries as she waits for news on missing passengers April 18 in Jindo.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A searchlight illuminates the capsized ferry on Thursday, April 17.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A woman cries during a candlelight vigil at Danwon High School in Ansan, South Korea, on April 17.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Family members of passengers aboard the sunken ferry gather at a gymnasium in Jindo on April 17.

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South Korean ferry sinks – The body of a victim is moved at a hospital in Mokpo on April 17.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Relatives of a passenger cry at a port in Jindo on April 17 as they wait for news on the rescue operation.

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South Korean ferry sinks – South Korean coast guard members and rescue teams search for passengers at the site of the sunken ferry on April 17.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A relative of a passenger cries as she waits for news on Wednesday, April 16.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Relatives check a list of survivors April 16 in Jindo.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Rescue crews attempt to save passengers from the ferry on April 16.

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South Korean ferry sinks – A relative waits for a missing loved one at the port in Jindo.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Parents at Danwon High School search for names of their children among the list of survivors. Ansan is a suburb of Seoul, the South Korean capital.

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South Korean ferry sinks – Helicopters hover over the ferry as rescue operations continue April 16.

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Ferry victim's haunting cry for mom

The search-and-rescue operation has turned into a grueling recovery of corpses. No one has been found alive since the ferry sank April 16 with a passenger load largely made up of high school students on a field trip.

Ferry survivors honor lost classmates

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First ship on scene saw no evacuation

The work has become even more difficult because divers have faced closed cabin doors blocked by debris.

Corralling the debris has been difficult for search teams.

Mattresses and clothing from the ship have been found up to 9 miles (15 km) away from the accident site, said Park Seung-ki, a spokesman for the rescue operation.

Large stow and trawler nets will be set up around the sunken ship to catch items that may float away, he said. At the same time, some three dozen ships will be clearing an oil spill from the ferry, which is threatening the livelihood of the local fishermen.

The ferry sank en route from Incheon to the resort island of Jeju, off the nation's southwestern coast.